MC’s Theatre finishes season with ‘Forum’

March 24, 2011

The Theatre at Marietta College will conclude its 64th mainstage season this weekend with three performances of "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum."

Shows will begin at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and at 2 p.m. Sunday. All performances are in the Friederich Theatre of the Hermann Fine Arts Center at the corner of Fourth and Butler streets on the Marietta College Campus.

A mix of Roman farce and American vaudeville, this hysterical award-winning musical follows the escapades of a young man and his wily slave, Pseudolus, after they strike a deal to exchange freedom for help in wooing the courtesan next door.

The theatre & music departments join forces to bring to life the glorious Stephen Sondheim score including "Love, I Hear," "Everybody Ought to Have a Maid," and "Comedy Tonight!"

"A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" debuted on Broadway in 1962 and ran for 964 performances. Subsequent Broadway revivals opened in 1972 and 1996.

One of the many marks of distinction for this musical is that every actor who has opened a Broadway run in the role of Pseudolus has won a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for the performance.

Composer Stephen Sondheim is a living legend of musical theatre. He has won more Tony Awards than any other composer and he is also one of the few musical theater composers to win a Pulitzer Prize for Drama. In addition to his own work, Sondheim helped found Young Playwrights, Inc to encourage playwrights 18 years old and younger. In March 2010, Sondheim turned 80. The Theatre at Marietta College is proud to join theaters across the nation in celebration of this.